The tidal bore of the Garonne River, France

摘要

A tidal bore is a series of waves propagating upstream as the tidal flow turns to rising. It forms during spring tide conditions when the tidal range exceeds 4 m to 6 m and the flood tide is confined to a narrow fun-neled estuary. In France alone, several tidal bores are observed (Figure 1). One most famous tidal bore on Earth was the mascaret of the Seine River (Malandain 1988). The Seine River tidal bore had had a sinister reputation: Its height could reach up to 7.3 m and the bore front travelled at a celerity of about up to 10 m/s (Bazin 1865, Tricker 1965). In the Baie du Mont Saint Michel, several tidal bore processes are experienced in creeks and rivers (Tessier and Terwindt 1994, Chanson 2004, 2008).